Written by Laurel Moore
Let’s face it. We are held to some pretty weird standards in college. These are supposed to be the years where we are allowed to not have it together. On the flip side, we are also expected to know what we want to do with the rest of our lives, have a major picked out, and then have a good enough GPA by the end of our four years to get a job. If you ask me, that is a lot for us to juggle.
Everyone says college is the best four years of your life, and we should be gaining many experiences. Now, how are we supposed to get a full night’s sleep, finish all our homework, study for our tests, maintain a social life, be involved on campus, and have fun? The obvious key to handling all of this is balance, but I think this sounds a lot easier to do on paper than it actually is in real life.
There are so many things to get involved in and there are also a new set of standards that are usually a lot harder than high school. Without your parents guiding you on what to do, it can be easy to get lost in the experience of school and lose track of your grades, or visa versa. I really think finding the balance while in college comes after making some mistakes. I know that probably isn’t the best advice, but I have realized that I found the balance after I was very imbalanced. It almost comes as a wake-up call for most people and only after they forget an assignment or miss out on an event do they realize that they have everything all wrong.
Finding the balance and keeping the balance is something that I have struggled with in the past. I have found that keeping a detailed planner, working on assignments well in advance, understanding the importance of sleep, trying not to skip meals, and not getting in too far over my head in extra-curricular activities has really helped keep me sane.
I agree that we are in one of the strangest points of our lives, and no one likes to talk about the struggles we all face. If you just work hard during the day, keep up with your extra-curriculars in the evenings, and enjoy your weekends, college will be a lot more manageable than before. Take a deep breath and be a little nicer to your peers because, especially during midterms, we are all trying to hang in the balance of our own lives.
